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Beyond Cost-Cutting: A 2026 Playbook for Owners and CEOs
This year, uncertainty will no longer be a temporary phase. It will likely be the operating environment. Margins will be tighter. Capital will be more expensive. Talent will be harder to retain and source. Customers will be more cautious.
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2026 Business Survival: What Owners Must Fix Now
When businesses come under pressure, owners instinctively chase revenue. Yet many companies fail not because sales are insufficient, but because cost structures, capital decisions, and leadership discipline are misaligned.
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The Silent Risk of “Guaranteed” Dividends to Family Members
History is filled with family enterprises weakened not by competition, but by internal extraction. Cash that should have strengthened the business was diverted to maintain lifestyles. Dividends replaced discipline. Tradition replaced judgment.
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An Open Letter to Founders This Holiday Season
Many within the next generation, including grandchildren, and those who marry into the family, are experiencing the rewards of wealth without fully understanding its origins.
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Part II: The One Asset Even Founders Cannot Rebuild is Time
The tragedy is not that founders stay involved—but that they stay involved too long, solving problems that no longer require their genius, while postponing a life that still has meaning beyond the boardroom.
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Part I When Is Enough, Enough? A Letter to Founders Who Cannot Let Go
Many founders, even in their twilight years, operate as if the business cannot survive without their daily involvement. They believe that passing the baton is tantamount to abandoning their life’s work.
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Part 1: A Letter to the Next Generation
Too many next-generation leaders unconsciously operate from entitlement. They expect loyalty without demonstrating competence. They desire authority without establishing credibility.
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Shaping the Next Generation Through Strategy and Accountability
As families prepare for the uncertainties that 2026 may bring, governance becomes the stabilizing compass aligning performance with purpose and ambition with responsibility.
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The 100-Year Blueprint: The Founder’s Essential Must-Do’s
If you are a business leader between the ages of 60 and 65, you now enter the most decisive stage of your leadership journey. These years determine whether your business survives another decade or endures a century.
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The Case of the Founder Who Waited Too Long
In our W+B Advisory research, fewer than 30 percent of Asian business owners have a succession plan. That means 70 percent of founders are gambling with their life’s work, hoping fate will give them more time.
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Bringing Your Constitution Back to Life
It’s never too late to correct course. What matters is not how long the Constitution has gathered dust, but how determined the family is to breathe life back into it.
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The Dangers of a Family Constitution Without Enforcement
The cost of non-enforcement is not measured in money—it’s measured in trust. Every time a family ignores the Constitution, it teaches the next generation that promises are optional.
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From Constitution to Decoration: Signed, Sealed… Shelved!
What many fail to realize is that the signing is just the beginning. The Constitution is not a “cure all” document—it is a framework that demands continuous activation. It must be reviewed, tested, and lived.
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Are You Betraying Your Family Enterprise?
True stewardship demands vigilance over even the smallest conflicts of interest. Governance is not just about rules—it’s about respect for what the family has built together.
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Part 3 Conflict of Interest: The Silent Killer of Family Enterprises
Conflict of interest often starts small, hidden under the guise of “family privilege,” but its impact compounds over time.
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Part 2: Corruption in Family Business: Lessons from the Flood Control Outrage
The lesson from both government corruption and family businesses is stark: silence is complicity. Turning a blind eye to conflict of interest is the fastest way to destroy wealth and unity.
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Corruption in Family Business: Lessons from the Flood Control Outrage
What we see in governments plagued by corruption often mirrors what occurs in families who inherit wealth and enterprises but fail to establish governance rules.
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Weathering the Storm: CP Group’s Crisis, Renewal, and Shared Purpose
The CP story demonstrates that succession is not just about passing ownership—it is about transmitting purpose. Without it, crises divide. With it, crises unite.
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From Seed Shop to $96.5B Giant: CP Group’s Succession Journey
For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), CP’s journey holds a powerful lesson: size is not the starting point—purpose is.
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The Lost Compass. Why Family Enterprises Do Not Last Three Generations
Rules cannot replace purpose. Constitutions define the how; a shared Family VMV defines the why. Without it, rules become walls, not bridges—and even exemplary governance cannot prevent drift, rivalry, and eventual fragmentation.
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Divided We Fall: When Families Do Not Have a Shared Purpose
Charles’ story underscores a truth many family enterprises overlook: a business can have the clearest Vision, Mission, and Values, yet still unravel without a shared family vision and purpose.
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The Stewardship Imperative: Transforming Heirs into Leaders
For founders, the message is clear: your deepest act of love is not holding power, but trusting successors. Clinging too long breeds apathy, division, and ultimately, the destruction of what you built.
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Part 2 Drive Without Discipline: The Mid-Life Successor’s Crossroads
If the 20s to early 30s successors often struggle with comfort and entitlement, the mid-30s to mid-40s group presents an almost opposite yet equally complex challenge: they are intensely driven, opportunistic, and deeply entrepreneurial...
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Mentoring Successors: Transforming Privilege into Stewardship
Adrian’s story carries a universal message: entitlement kills stewardship. Comfort can dull urgency, and the desire to “prove something” can breed shortcuts.
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Beyond Entitlement: Building a Legacy of Stewardship
Ultimately, preserving a legacy isn’t just about assets or titles. It’s about transmitting values, nurturing purpose, and preparing the next generation to become responsible stewards, not mere heirs.
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Governance is Love in Structured Form
The lesson is clear: do not wait for a crisis to force change. Governance isn’t an emergency measure, like a fire extinguisher brought out when flames erupt.
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Conditioned to Inherit, Not to Lead: The Pervasive Entitlement Trap
In many Asian families, wealth peaks with the founding generation (G1). Without deliberate action, it often declines by G3 or G4—a reality echoed in the adage: “Shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations.”
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Entitlement in the Next Generation – When Parental Love Becomes a Liability
The most insidious driver of entitlement is guilt. Many founders, having missed birthdays, graduations, and family moments in the name of business growth, try to compensate by giving their children everything—except their time.
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How Governance Prevents Narcissists from Taking Over
Let’s be clear: family businesses are not just about profits—they’re about people. Bonds, shared stories, unspoken trust. But what happens when one of those people turns toxic?
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Inside the Mind of a Narcissistic Successor
In Olivia’s case, the family's culture of deference became the enabler of its imminent downfall. Her nephew’s unchecked power, fueled by entitlement and emotional manipulation, effectively dismantled what generations built.
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When a Narcissist Leads a Family Business
Narcissism in family business doesn’t start with ego—it starts with overprotection. When successors are groomed without exposure to hardship, without experiencing the consequences of failure, they develop a fragile sense of invincibility.
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When Tragedy Strikes — The Cost of Unpreparedness
Many patriarchs believe only they can safeguard the business they built. Letting go feels like inviting chaos. Ironically, this paralysis becomes the very threat they sought to avoid.
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The Icarus Parable and the Peril of Entitled Leadership
When power is inherited without humility, leadership devolves into dominance, and control replaces accountability, even the most celebrated founders or successors risk collapse.
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Part 1: The Idiot Son (or Daughter)
Family enterprises must evolve from a culture of entitlement to one of meritocracy. This means putting people in roles because they are qualified, not because they share DNA with the founder.
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Legacy Is Earned, Not Inherited: A Founder’s Vote for the Greater Good
In family enterprises, succession is not merely a familial concern; it's a strategic business decision that determines the company's longevity and legacy. The process demands objectivity, foresight, and, often, the courage to look beyond bloodlines.
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Your Last Five Summers: Control or Continuity. The Ayala Transition Part 2
By the third summer—if you have walked the hard paths of legacy reflection and successor selection—you now stand at the most defining moment in your leadership journey: Letting go.
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Countdown to Legacy: Your 5 Final Summers to Lead, Let Go, and Last Forever
This year, you must declare your decision that you are stepping back from day-to-day operations. That you would like to devote your time preparing for the future.
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When Legacy Dies with the Dreamer: A Wake-Up Call for Founders
Governance is not just a business tool. It’s a form of love, stewardship, and foresight. It’s about documenting your vision, involving successors early, clarifying roles, and institutionalizing decision-making.
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Governance Built Early is Governance That Lasts — A Vital Lesson from the Trump Chaos
The Trump experience is a stark reminder: when power transfers without preparation, chaos fills the vacuum. For family businesses, the lesson is clear. Build governance when you still have time, authority, and clarity of vision.
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Succession Without Safeguards: Learning From Donald Trump’s Turmoil
In the absence of structured governance and proactive succession planning, even the most successful family business can unravel with terrifying speed.
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When Founders Step Down but Never Step Away
Founders are visionaries, builders, and decision-makers. They have spent decades shaping their businesses, making sacrifices, and defining success on their own terms. So, when the time comes to step down, many find the transition unbearable.
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The Founder’s Deepest Regret
In the relentless pursuit of success, founders and business leaders often fall into the trap of measuring life’s worth by tangible assets.
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If something happens to you today, will your business survive without you?
A smooth succession happens when the next generation is trained, tested, and ready—not when they’re forced into leadership unprepared.
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The Real Threat to Family Businesses: Neglecting Succession and Governance
Ownership is not a birthright; it carries responsibility. As a founder, ensuring financial security is not enough. The long-term survival of the business depends on preparing the next generation to be responsible stewards, not just heirs.
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Beyond Wealth: Why Leadership Succession Matters More Than Profit
History is filled with families who built vast fortunes, only to see them squandered in a single generation due to a lack of leadership preparation. It is not enough to pass down shares or assets—you must pass down stewardship.
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Why Selling Shares to Your Children is the Right Thing to Do Last Part
Selling shares to children is not about withholding love or burdening them with unnecessary financial obligations—it is about instilling responsibility, fostering financial discipline, and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the business.
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Why Selling Shares to Your Children is the Right Thing to Do Part 1
Traditionally, family business shares are transferred as an inheritance, gifted freely to children as a sign of love and responsibility.
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Ownership of Shares: A Source of Conflict or a Testament of Love?
In Asia, and particularly within Confucian-influenced cultures, the act of passing down wealth and business ownership to the next generation is seen as both a privilege and a duty.
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The Danger of Equal Division of Shares Part 2
Family businesses must develop a transparent, formalized process that specifies who will receive shares, under what circumstances, and with what qualifications.
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Is it Equal, Equitable or Merit-based Share Transfer?
By creating a well-defined framework, family businesses can mitigate potential conflicts and ensure that ownership transitions are purposeful and equitable.
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The Danger of Equal Division in a Family Business
While dividing shares equally among heirs may seem like a gesture of fairness, it often leads to dysfunction and discord. Equal ownership fails to account for the differing levels of commitment, competency, and interest among family members.
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Why Reluctance to Enforce Governance Can Destroy Family Harmony
Governance requires consistency and discipline, even when emotions come into play. Without enforcement, a family constitution becomes an empty promise, leading to fractured relationships and a vulnerable business.
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We Have a Constitution, So Why Are We Still Fighting?
Family businesses are often built on legacies, relationships, and dreams, serving as the foundation for multi-generational success.
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When Wealth Breeds Conflict: Governance as the Key to Family Business Survival
While the allure of growth and profit is undeniable, focusing solely on business expansion at the expense of family unity and governance can have devastating consequences.
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A Century of Legacy – Building the Foundations of Enduring Family Enterprises
At the heart of every 100-year family enterprise is an unwavering commitment to shared values and purpose. These values serve as the glue that binds the family, even in moments of conflict or uncertainty.
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Strategic Leadership 2025: Becoming the CEO Your Business Needs
The challenges organizations face are multifaceted, demanding tailored solutions to help them thrive in a competitive and rapidly evolving market landscape.
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Leading into 2025: Top 5 Qualities of an Effective CEO
The qualities of an effective CEO in 2025—focusing on value over price, service excellence, innovation, people development, and structural sustainability—are interconnected. Together, they create a roadmap for resilience and growth in an uncertain future.
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Part 2: It’s a Turbulent World Out There! Are You an Effective CEO?
Navigating 2025’s uncertainties demands proactive leadership. By emphasizing Product, Productivity, and Profit, CEOs can safeguard their organizations' relevance, efficiency, and financial stability.
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Part 1: Thriving Through Turbulence: How CEOs Can Navigate 2025’s Headwinds
As organizations brace for the uncertainties of 2025, CEOs must focus on controllable internal factors. Prioritizing People ensures resilience, while streamlining Processes builds agility and operational efficiency.
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Weathering the Storm: Guiding Family-Owned Businesses Through 2025’s Challenges
Family businesses have weathered storms before, but the complexity of today’s challenges calls for a renewed focus on resilience.
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Don't Be Like Dad! Part 2: A Case Study on Evolving Leadership in a Family Business
This second part examines a real-world example of a family business operating in the Asia Pacific region where these challenges surfaced in full...
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Don’t Be Like Dad! A Succession and Leadership Challenge
In many family businesses, the founder’s leadership is central to the company’s identity and success.
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Developing Leaders, Not Just Successors, in Family Businesses Last Part
The journey of leadership development is not just about passing the torch but also about equipping successors with the skills, emotional intelligence, and experience they need to thrive.
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Developing Leaders, Not Just Successors, in Family Businesses (Part 2)
In this article, we delve deeper into the essential components that turn potential successors into capable, resilient leaders: mentorship, emotional intelligence, values-driven leadership, and resilience.
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From Heirs to Leaders: Why Developing Leadership in Family Businesses is Essential for Long-Term Success
A successor is someone who takes on the role of leadership—often due to bloodline, familial obligations, or company bylaws. However, being a leader requires much more than simply being the designated heir.
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Ownership vs. Stewardship: Shaping the Future of Family Businesses Part 2
This practice highlights Japan's belief in stewardship over inheritance, prioritizing the business’s longevity and success over personal entitlement.
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What is more important---Ownership vs. Stewardship? Part 1
At its core, ownership is about rights—the right to make decisions, distribute profits, and direct the course of the business. Stewardship, however, is about responsibility.
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A Steward's Perspective: Think Beyond Ownership
At the heart of this responsibility is a distinction between ownership and stewardship. While ownership is often seen as control and possession, stewardship calls for a deeper commitment.
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Beyond Japan: Global Implications of Strategic Succession
While Mukoyoshi is uniquely Japanese, its core principles—meritocracy, long-term vision, and flexibility in succession planning—are universally applicable.
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Will the Mukoyoshi Model Work in China and Asia?
In Chinese culture, the succession of leadership within family businesses is deeply rooted in the principle of passing the mantle to the eldest son or a close male family member.
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Part 2 "Better to Have Daughters than Sons, for then I can choose my Sons"
In the second installment of our series on family business succession, we explore the Mukoyoshi practice—a uniquely Japanese approach with universal lessons.
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Part 1: The Japanese Model of Family Business Succession: A Tradition of Longevity
The concept of long-term, generational succession is deeply rooted in Japanese society, and this practice has allowed many Japanese companies to thrive across centuries.
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Family Wealth Preservation Will Ensure a Lasting Legacy
Family wealth preservation is not just about financial security; it's about creating a lasting legacy that upholds the family's core values and principles.
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Balancing Parenthood and Entrepreneurship. The Journey of Founder M
The stories of entrepreneurs like M demonstrate that it is possible to find a balance between building a successful business and being a good parent.
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True Legacy Starts With Being a Good Parent
Many founders have worked tirelessly to build their businesses from the ground up, often sacrificing family time for financial success. However, in a century, the homes and possessions we fight so hard to acquire will belong to strangers.
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Is Accumulating Wealth More Important than Creating Lasting Memories?
"When a business owner dies or becomes permanently disabled, the business itself may die or be permanently disabled—not because something wrong was done, but because nothing was done!"
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Effective Ways of Dealing with Cousin/Shareholders in Family Businesses: Last Part
Moreover, balancing the drive to make money with the need for sound governance is critical. While financial success is important, it should not overshadow the importance of family harmony and long-term sustainability.
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Effective Ways of Dealing with Cousin/Shareholders in Family Businesses Part 2
Establishing formal governance structures early on was one of the critical steps the family took. They created a family constitution, a family council, and a shareholder agreement.
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The Powerful Role of Your Family Code of Conduct
The transition from the first to the second and then to the third generation can further increase both the number of owners and the diversity of their ambitions for the business.
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The Crucial Role of a Family Code of Conduct
The B family’s experience illustrates the crucial role of a family code of conduct in managing family-owned businesses.
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Why Many Chinese Family Businesses Fade by the Third Generation? Part 2
While it may be tempting to blame the founder for these disputes, the reality is often more complex.
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Why Many Chinese Family Businesses Fade by the Third Generation
This shift in societal norms and values has led to changes in family dynamics, as younger generations may have different priorities, lifestyles, and career aspirations compared to their predecessors.
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Understanding Why Family Constitutions Fail - A Case Study of Family B
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Upholding Non-Negotiable Values: Humility, Discipline, and Respect
As founders and mentors, we observe with deep concern the gradual erosion of humility, discipline, and respect among the next generation of leaders—a trend that threatens the very essence of our businesses.
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A Hidden Crisis: 90% of Directors Are Unaware of Their Fiduciary Duties!
The intricate dynamics of familial relationships can complicate decision-making processes as they may pose a threat to the family members' commitment to their fiduciary obligations.
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Entitled Family Members Can Undermine Business Success (Part 1)
Stewardship is the key to ensuring the long-term sustainability and success of family-owned businesses. In contrast, entitled family members can pose a significant threat to business stability.
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Founder Must Transition from Being A Great Golfer to a Team Player
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Founders Must Lead The Way! Part 1
In an evolving and growing family business, the key to sustained success is for the founder to recognize that the business is now a team sport, where cohesion and collaboration are paramount to winning games.
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Navigating the Future: An Open Letter to the Stewards of Family Businesses
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A Call for Unity and Reconciliation: My Open Letter to Warring Siblings
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Navigating Succession: A Year-End Letter to Family Business Owners
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Healing Sibling Scars: Understand the Source of Childhood-Rooted Conflicts
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The Aimee and Allan Sibling Conflict, Solved! Last Part
Even siblings with harmonious childhoods can face rivalry in the professional realm due to the unique challenges a family business presents.
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Unveiling the Root Causes of Sibling Rivalry: The Aimee and Alex Story Part 2
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Sibling Rivalry Unveiled: Balancing Power, Ego, or Greed in Family Businesses
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From Family-First Leadership to Meritocracy: It's Time to Shift Part 2
His father's passing thrusts him into the role of President, a position that always seemed destined for him, but as he embarks on critical operational decisions, questions that echo through family business corridors are raised.
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Understanding the Bias: Why Founders Prioritize Family Over Meritocracy
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Fair Should Not Be Equal in a Family-Owned Business
Enforcing strict equality within a family-owned business can pose significant challenges, especially because family members often bring varying levels of expertise, experience, and commitment to the table.
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Resolving the Father-Son Conflict in a Family Business: A Path to Harmony and Success
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Unraveling the Pervasive Father-Son Conflict in Family Businesses: A Complex and Compelling Tale
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The Decision Dilemma: Decisiveness in Deals, Indecision in Succession
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Succession Planning: The Cornerstone of Family Business Legacy and Prosperity
In family enterprises, a sobering truth prevails: With each generational transition, the odds of a company's survival diminish.
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From Comfort Zone to Resilience: A Next-Gen Transformative Journey
In my extensive experience helping families in Asia, the concept of Adversity Quotient (AQ) has emerged as a pivotal metric for assessing an individual's capacity to adapt and thrive in the face of adversity.
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A Fail-Proof Succession Starts with Your Successors AQ
Often overshadowed by the larger, publicly traded corporations, family businesses operated quietly, keeping their successes and struggles within the family circle, but the landscape is changing rapidly.
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The Dangerous Mindset of Many Next-Generation Leaders
What will it take for the next generation to break the cycle of adopting detrimental behavioral patterns and mindsets?
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The Significance of Strategic Planning in Family-Owned Businesses
In a recent strategic planning session for a family-owned business, powerful questions emerged: 'Why are we in Business Together?' and 'Where do we want the business to be in 3 years and 5 years?'
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Wealth Will Not Last Two Generations: The Consequences of a Low AQ
It is a fact that many next-generation family members have a Low Adversity Quotient (AQ). Consequently, when next-generation successors have low AQ, there is a significant risk that the business they inherit will suffer.
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A Founder's Adversity Quotient
Armed with nothing but grit, founders experience firsthand the struggles and setbacks that come with creating something from nothing, which hones them into extraordinary entrepreneurs with unmatched AQ.
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Is Inherited Wealth Evil?
Oftentimes, children of affluent parents have not had time to establish their own identities separate from the wealth and status of the business.
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Wealth Will Not Last Two Generations Part 1
"Transferring wealth to your children can be dangerous if not done thoughtfully and responsibly." - Prof. Enrique Soriano
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Family Business Covenants Against Nepotism
Regardless of blood relations, employment should never be guaranteed
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If You Can't Avoid Nepotism, Set the Rules of Engagement
Family members in leadership positions should lead by example, demonstrating professionalism, competence, and a commitment to the success of the business
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The Real Dangers of Nepotism in Family-Run Businesses
Why has nepotism gained more attention? The number of family businesses today is growing, and so is the awareness of the negative effects of nepotism prevalent in the context of a family business
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Rules for Eliminating Nepotism in the Family Business
When employing people who are related to the founder, either by blood or marriage, it should always be based on the following non-negotiable metrics: outside experience, credentials, exceptional work in the past, and merit.
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Did You Hire Your Children Based on Talent or Birthright?
As a founder, did you consider talent or base your decision solely on birthright when you appointed family members? Was the last name of your son or daughter the sole reason? Was it purely trust? Would you have done it any other way?
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The Advantages of Family Members Working in the Family Business
All businesses face challenges and family-owned businesses are not immune to these, but by the very nature of a family business structure, there are also unique sets of opportunities that family businesses can take advantage of.
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Advantages and Disadvantages of Family Members Working in the Family Business
In my experience mentoring next-generation successors, their biggest handicap is that they were never exposed to work in the real world.
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How to Effectively Manage In-Laws Last Part
If you really believe that in-laws deserve to be future shareholders, it is absolutely necessary that clear policies and procedures must be in place for in-law employment, share ownership
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When Shares Are Carelessly Passed On To In-Laws
Having in-laws owning shares in a family business has challenges
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Rights of the Next Generation's Spouses
As a family business grows and is passed on to the children, concerns arise regarding the rights of the next-generation family members and their spouses to own and control the company.
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You Can Never Manage Your Business From The Grave
The stakes are high, the consequences of a wrong decision are devastating
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50/50 Estate Split is a Double-Edged Sword Part 2
Splitting assets and shares of the family business between your children can be tricky as it puts to the test the parent owners’ fairness to everybody
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50/50 Estate Split is a Double-Edged Sword Part 2
Splitting assets and shares of the family business between your children can be tricky
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50/50 Estate Split is a Double-Edged Sword: A Parent’s Dilemma
With the businesses going full throttle, the couple became worried that if they gave the business to son B, which seemed fair to do, they would not have any means to treat son A equally, which seemed unfair to him.
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A Tale of Two Siblings Fighting a Lost Cause
Conflicts in life are unpleasant. It destroys relationships and zaps the energy of individuals and their families, so many families try to avoid conflict at all costs, which is a big mistake.
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Poorly Crafted Family Compensation Policy is Divisive
Without understanding the concept of compensation, the children may end up disillusioned, confused, frustrated, and constantly asking why their salaries are equal.
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Giving Your Children Equal Compensation Is Wrong
Conflict is normal in family businesses, but the unresolved ones classified as excessive can ultimately create damage and instability that, when not constructively dealt with, can open a prolific source of deep-seated problems like a pandora's box.
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Is It Fair to Divide Your Wealth Equally?
The question that begs to be answered is: “Is giving equal ownership really fair, or is fairness in the context of wealth transfer never equal?”
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The Consequences of being an Absentee Father (Mother)
As an exasperated parent-founder once said, "It is easier to run a conglomerate with thousands of executives, but it is far more difficult managing an offspring." But why do 'black sheep' family members really exist?
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Baa, Baa, Black Sheep
Tagged "black sheep" family members are indeed quite a character.
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Preventing Entitlement Starts With Good Parenting
There are many ways to prevent children from becoming entitled. The most effective approach is through role modeling and communication.
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When Blood Becomes a Birthright
For the new year, it is appropriate and timely to reinforce to one and all that raising non-entitled children (and grandchildren)
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'Someday This Business Will Be Yours'
When your children grow up believing that they will own the business no matter what they do or how they act, an entitlement mindset is conditioned at an early age.
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Having Entitled Family Members Is Plain Wrong!
One thing is clear, having entitled family members is a clear and present danger.
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A Lifetime of Entitlement: The Red Bull Scion Story
Entitlement issues are rampant in family enterprises. It is a dangerous disease that can damage the family business.
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Affluence + Influence = Entitlement: The Red Bull Scion Story
Parents/Owners/Operators must be firm and should play the part of business owners rather than parents. Mixing the two hats in a business environment is a recipe for having entitled children.
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Entitlement Can Destroy a Family Enterprise
Without a doubt, the fault lies with the founders/parents/owners. They play a major part in cultivating entitled family members
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The Single Worst Mistake Business Owners Make: DOING NOTHING!
The failure of the leader to set the rules of engagement early on can inevitably spark next-generation conflict.
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Spectacular Failure! Hubris, the Silent Killer of Business Last Part
Any corporate transition must be deliberate since many enterprises typically start as informal mom-and-pop businesses.
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A Founder’s Spectacular Failure! Part 2
This second article will highlight the visible symptoms of internal wrongdoing, mismanagement, and failed leadership by a very controlling founder
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A Founder’s Spectacular Failure!
Take note: a company is only as good or bad as its leaders, so the real fault lies in those who run them.
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The Benefits of an Experienced Family Business Consultant
A consultant’s task is to amplify a very important message: that governance, succession, family harmony, and legacy go hand in hand.
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The Non-Negotiable Qualities of an Experienced Family Consultant
As the founder/manager of a 35-year-old construction business who went through an open-heart surgery, Rey became fearful of what might have happened if he did not survive the ordeal.
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The Dangers of Hiring an Inexperienced Family Consultant
Succession is daunting and challenging and will require emotional acceptance from the leader that the time has come to lead this very critical and significant milestone in the life of the enterprise.
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Is Your Family Qualified to have a Family Constitution?
Flawed family constitutions are usually made of completed agreements and signed documents that are never enforced, enhanced, and implemented, making them just some useless piece of paper.
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The Deadly Cost of Weak Governance: Business Failure and Family Conflict
Why do petty conflicts often morph into sibling rivalries? The blame falls squarely on the leader either for choosing the “Do Nothing” option or carelessly selecting an unqualified, inexperienced family consultant.
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Whose Fault is it When Siblings Fight in the Business?
Almost 60% of our intervention as an ASEAN family business advisor happens to be sibling rivalry, especially among offspring that work together whose tensions are “rooted in conflict over business styles and strategies rather than family emotions.”
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Why Do Siblings Fight for Control and Money?
United families that are successful and less prone to conflict have these three things: (1) a unifying goal, (2) open and formal communication, (3) leaders that are smart enough to think about the next generation.
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Giving the Next Generation Leader Wings Part 2
Every founder’s dream is to watch their children grow up to become responsible adults, eventually join the business, and work as a team to ensure the business becomes successful, but, 7 of 10 family-owned businesses do not make it to the third generation.
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Giving the Next Generation Leader Wings
Roby, a second-generation family member, was rotated by his father among the various departments of their business.
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‘The trouble is, you think you have time.’
There may not be any ‘later’ for us to do the thing we decided to put off, so to amplify my advice to all family business leaders, start the journey now.
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Avoid Transforming Petty Conflict To Hatred and Hostility
“Every family business is unique and complex in its own way, so boilerplate solutions don’t always work. Still, there are common rules of engagement for handling employees who are related by blood or marriage.”
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Successful Succession: A Founder's Test of Greatness
Management expert Peter Drucker once said, "The final test of greatness in a founder is how well he chooses a successor and whether he can step aside and let his successor run the company."
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Stop Building A Business. Start Building Your Legacy
In any governance and succession journey, every founder must realize that the greater good philosophy must and will always prevail.
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Parent’s Letter To Their Distraught Son: Integrity and Commitment
The most successful family businesses that have lasted for many generations are effective in drawing boundaries between two distinct areas – the family side and the business side.
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Parents’ Letter to their Distraught Son Part 2
Regarding the lack of open communication that's unfortunately common between parents and their children, we believe that both parties should do more to address this.
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Parents' Letter to a Distraught Son
As parents, we are aware that it can be difficult to manage relationships in a family business context given the different roles we play and the confusion it at times creates without clear boundaries between these roles.
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The Twin Evils Unique in Family Businesses
By its very nature, the family and business systems are so conjoined that when left on their own to feed, they can lead to frayed nerves, emotional conflict, and inevitably schism.
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What drives people to declare war against their own flesh and blood? Part 2
"Inheritance conflict doesn’t come out of nowhere; it is a continuation of long-term relationship problems that resurface upon the illness or death of a loved one.” – Estate Planning expert P. Mark Accettura.
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What drives people to declare war against their own flesh and blood?
Any legal drama will eventually morph into a public scandal where the courts and legal advisors will end up as the only clear winners.
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Fight, Flight, or Mediate?
The final test of a committed and sincere family is how they can agree to disagree in a climate of trust, objectivity and relentless communication.
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The Generational Impact of a Family in Conflict
Sadly, when adult siblings take their issues into the legal forum, with inherent delays, high costs, and frustrations, irreparable damage to the family may be caused and it would be very difficult to restore trust.
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Every Family Constitution Is Unique
Without any doubt, crafting a family constitution is one major step toward every founder’s dream and aspiration to ensure that his blood, sweat, and tears can perpetuate the business for generations to come.
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The Inconvenient Truth Part 2
Jack recounted the day he suddenly clutched his chest after feeling tightness that radiated to the base of his neck, jaw, and left arm, recalling how if not for the quick action of his staff, he would have died.
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The Inconvenient Truth
I was asked how I differentiate a healthy family enterprise from an unhealthy one. My straightforward answer was how each embraces change as it unequivocally translates governance and succession, shared purpose and alignment of vision and values.
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The Family Suffers When There is No Will to Change Part 2
Mixing family and business issues is like speeding downhill on a rain-soaked, dangerous zig-zag road using a car with defective brake pads. Having family issues in the business is always full of emotions and contains subjective decision-making.
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The Family Suffers When There is No Will to Change
Reinforcing a founder's unfounded fears such as fear of the unknown, of losing power, of failure of the next generation, and of doing nothing when he decides to step back is their paranoia of what they incessantly hear from their friends.
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Breaking a Promise To Your children
I still want to take the lead, but I also want to empower my children to make major decisions. Is it possible to do both — to step back but still be involved without overriding their decision? What if they commit major mistakes?
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The Lack of Meaning and Purpose is a death sentence for family firms
Is it purely because of blood and money? Collectively, are family members looking at the horizon or seeing themselves out of the business to enjoy daddy's money
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A Powerful Sense of Purpose Can Withstand Generational Challenges
I can conclusively say that the lack of communication, the absence of a shared purpose, and the false belief that family unity is paramount are the major reasons family-owned businesses do not last two or three generations.
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